


Scrambled Eggs and Waffles

by ayyyywhatsup



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: ARTIST VIKTOR, Along with Yuuko and Phichit, Alternate Universe - Diners, And Yuuri takes all of them, Bless christophe, He is the MVP in this one, M/M, Miscommunication, POV Alternating, Pining, Soon to be teacher Yuuri, Viktor draws pretty pictures on napkins, Yuuri works at his parent's diner
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-06
Updated: 2017-01-06
Packaged: 2018-09-15 04:07:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,131
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9218237
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ayyyywhatsup/pseuds/ayyyywhatsup
Summary: Yuuri, someone who hates mornings, picks up a job at his parent's breakfast diner. If it weren't for his friends Yuuko and Phichit, he'd have probably fried off his face by now. Viktor comes in one day, and leaves behind little pieces of art behind on napkins. Soon, mornings become just a bit more bearable.Diner! AU





	

**Author's Note:**

> Unbeta-ed and unedited, I just wanted to share this right away, but I might end up editing this later.
> 
> Hope you enjoy!

Yuuri _hates_ mornings. If it weren't for the fact that he worked at his parent’s breakfast diner, he wouldn't even be up at 7 in the morning. He knows he shouldn't grumble though. He should be grateful his parents employed him in the first place. If it weren't for them, Yuuri would probably drive himself crazy looking for work. Looking for a teaching position as a kindergarten teacher when you've just freshly graduated is tough. No one wants to hire a 22 year old to be in charge of a bunch of 5 year olds. So Yuuri works at his parent's diner, while subbing in for different teachers on the side. It's not ideal, but at least it's something.

The only thing other than the early mornings that bothers Yuuri is how rude some of the customers can get. It's not too bad, considering most people in town are too sleepy to be mean, but there are some that even make _Yuuri_ want to punch someone's face in. Like yesterday morning, for example. Someone didn't like the food they ordered, which is fine, Yuuri believes that people are entitled to their opinions. But that doesn't mean it's ok to eat all said food, and demand a refund because they 'hated’ it.

Yuuri's just glad that he works the kitchen most days, because while it's hectic cooking up all the orders, at least he doesn't have to confront rude customers. He can't help but feel bad for Yuuko and Phichit though, considering they're the ones who take down orders most of the time. His friends claim they don't mind (they'd fight anyone who bothered Yuuri), and for that, he's thankful. 

*

It's another slow Tuesday morning at the diner, the smell of coffee and freshly made waffles wafting through the air as tired patrons settle down for a meal. Yuuri feels dead on his feet as he ties on his apron, dreading working today's shift. He's hosting, and he'd rather plant his face on the stove than pretend to cheerily take people's orders. When he sees that someone did a dine and dash, Yuuko's hand on his shoulder is the only thing that keeps him from frying his face off.

It's too early to be annoyed by strangers, Yuuri groans as he wipes down the table, hopefully no one else comes in for the rest of the morning. As if someone out there was reading his mind, the door swings open, revealing a disheveled, sleepy silver haired man. Those types of customers are his favorite, Yuuri thinks as he groggily leads the slightly taller man to a two seater. They're quiet, don't make a fuss, and look just as tired as Yuuri feels. After scribbling down an order for item #2, scrambled eggs and waffles, he shuffles the order to Phichit, who grabs the order with a little _too_ much gusto.

When he returns to the main dining area, he notes that besides the stranger and the sweet old grandma who comes every morning, it's pleasantly empty. Yuuri sighs as he slumps onto one of the stools at the drink bar, closing his eyes as he waits for Phichit to ding the the bell by the order window.

Way too soon, a steaming plate of eggs and waffles are placed on the window, followed by a crisp ding of the bell. Grabbing his towel, he carefully picks up the hot plate as he makes his way to the customer’s table. The man looks up at him when he sees Yuuri approach, and smiles tiredly in appreciation when his food is placed on the table. He looks cuter up close, Yuuri muses as he heads back to his station, but how does he manage to pull of the 'just rolled out of bed look’ so well?

Soon the only sounds that fill the diner are dishes being washed and the clank of a fork and knife on a plate. Yuuri fiddles with the salt and pepper shakers at the bar, eyeing the clock in preparation. He has an interview for a teaching position at a school nearby soon, and he can feel the nerves pile on top of his already tired demeanor.

The salt shaker topples over as his hand jerks from a sudden noise. A loud ringtone blares across the diner, it's recipient nearly falling over as he scrambles to answer the phone. The silver haired man is then gone in a flash, and Yuuri thinks he's got another one of those dine & dashers. Sighing to himself, he makes his way to clear the table, to see dollar bills thrown messily on top of a napkin. Yuuri picks them up, to reveal lines and swirls of black ink on the napkin. It's a sketch of a poodle, and it's stunningly realistic. Yuuri almost finds himself reaching out to actually _pet_ the drawing in front of him. Looking around to see if anyone's watching, he pockets the napkin, smiling for the first time that morning.

*

Yuuri sighs as he sinks in lower on the couch, feeling defeated. His interview didn't go so well, considering how disappointed the interviewer looked when they saw how young he looked. He didn't even need to hear it. He already knew he wasn't getting the job when he heard the insincere tone of the interviewer's voice tell him they would call him. They weren't going to. Yuuri's starting to think he might end up working at his parent's diner for the rest of his life.

Now he sits on the couch moping, waiting for Phichit to come home from school so he could tell him the news. He scrolls through his laptop, sighing sadly as he looks for any open teaching positions near the area. There are, but they either need 5 years+ of experience, or are in fields he's not qualified to teach. Taking off his glasses to scrub his eyes, he shuts his laptop in frustration. No one told him that the real world was going to be this tough. If he knew how hard job searching was, he would have gone to grad school instead. Then he remembers Yuuko's haunted eyes after a long night of research and shudders. Maybe not.

The sound of a door opening causes Yuuri to turn his head. He's greeted by the sight of his friend kicking off his shoes and placing his bag on the kitchen counter, before Phichit takes a seat beside him on the couch.

”So Yuuri,” an arm swings around his neck. “How'd the interview go?”

”Not so good,” Yuuri groans, resting his head on his friend's shoulder. “They said they'd call me next week, but I can tell they're not.”

Phichit frowns slightly, squeezing the hand that's resting on Yuuri's shoulder. “I'm sure they'll give you the job, don't doubt yourself so much.”

”I guess,” he decides to change the topic, not really interested in talking about his failures. “How was school? It's midterm season isn't it?”

At that Phichit groans, his arms coming up to cover his face. “Yes, and they're killing me. Who gives a four page paper right before an exam? It's like my professors are _trying_ to kill me.”

Yuuri only pats his friend's back, chuckling. “You'll live Phichit. Look on the bright side, at least they'll be over soon.”

”Yeah, I guess you're right, they'll be over when they _kill_ me.” Phichit starts to laugh at his own theatrics, Yuuri joining in. “At least I don't have to grade papers _and_ study for exams like Yuuko, I don't even want to think about it.” 

His friend shudders, then pops up and heads to the kitchen. “C’mon Yuuri, I'm teaching you how to make some khao soi today, I'm tired of the greasy fries and dry bland chicken at school. Who knows, maybe Mrs. Katsuki will add it on the menu one day.”

Eventually the noodles were done, it's aroma staining the apartment with the scent of several spices and coconut milk. As they ate in comfortable silence, Yuuri thought back to the customer who left the napkin behind. It was strange. Why would someone draw on a napkin? Sure people doodled on them when they were bored, but not to the extent of the poodle drawing. When Phichit spoke up, asking why Yuuri looked so deep in thought, he decided he was putting too much thought into this.

After all, it was only a napkin.

*

Taking out his wrinkled notepad, Yuuri writes down a large order for a family of 5. He tries his best to act peppy, especially in front of the little kids, but when he hands the order to an even groggier Yuuko, he feels like mentally collapsing. This whole week he's been the host of the diner, mainly because Phichit and Yuuko are buried deep with exams. While Yuuri still despises the early mornings, he's not cruel. It doesn't mean he has to like it. Especially not when one of the toddlers squirts ketchup all over his apron.

He's wiping ketchup off his apron when the door swings open again. A familiar looking silver haired man takes a seat near the exit by the window, and Yuuri goes to take his order. Up close the man looks tired, as if he was up all night. He doesn't speak, just points to item #2, scrambled eggs and waffles. Nodding as he takes the menu, Yuuri places the order ticket at the window, and waits for Phichit to ding the bell.

While he waits, Yuuri covertly stares at the rumpled man by the exit. He's not one of the regulars, but it feels like the man had been here before. Yuuri doesn't dwell too much on the subject. Instead he gets out a coffee pot and starts brewing some more coffee. The grandma who comes every morning is due in 15 minutes, and Yuuri doesn't want the coffee to be too hot when she gets here.

After the breakfast rush slows down, Yuuri narrows his eyes in suspicion. The silver haired man by the exit hasn't left yet, his food finished ages ago. He's been seated there for at least two hours. The man also keeps looking at the grandma seated at the table next to him, scribbling every so often. Is this guy planning to hurt an innocent granny? Yuuri may be a pacifist, but that doesn't mean he's going to let an old lady get hurt. He keeps his hand on the phone placed by the drink bar, fingers ready to dial the police if needed. It turns out he doesn't even need to, because the man abruptly stands up to leave. Yuuri can see him place money on the table, and he quickly walks over when the man is out the door.

Getting closer he can see the grandma is unharmed, still talking on the phone with one of her friends. Yuuri sighs in relief, and goes to collect the bills left on the table. He almost misses it, but he spots the napkin from the corner of his eye. Curious, he grabs it, and gasps when he sees the piece of art on it. It's a portrait of the grandma sitting at the table. Grabbing the plate on the table, he quickly makes his way back to take a closer look at the drawing.

Black ink covers the napkin, melding together in a work of delicate lines and dots to paint a beautiful portrait. It wasn't incredibly detailed, but the stranger managed to perfectly capture the serene expression on the granny's face as she sipped on her coffee. Despite its simplicity, it was still breathtaking. Folding it lightly to put in his pocket, he stopped when he felt another napkin in there. He took it out, to reveal the poodle drawing he pocketed days before.

Putting the two and two together, Yuuri realized why the stranger looked so familiar. Looking back to the door, Yuuri could only sit there and hope that the silver haired man would return. The way he manipulated a pen was stunning, and Yuuri wanted more.

He could get used to early mornings if it meant finding more napkin art like this.

*

Saturday afternoon Yuuri stretched languidly in his bed. It was his day off, and he was taking advantage of sleeping the morning away. Grabbing his phone, he blinked sleepily as he took in the amount of notifications flooding it. He panicked once he read through all of them, flailing as he fell onto the floor. Yuuri was late. Oh so very late.

Yuuko was tapping her foot impatiently when Yuuri finally arrived. “Yuuri! I should've known you would sleep in late, it's not like you've changed much since elementary school,” she teased, letting him know she wasn't really angry.

”Heh, sorry about that Yuuko,” Yuuri rubbed his neck sheepishly. “I hope you guys weren't waiting too long.”

Linking an arm through his, Yuuko leads him into the restaurant, “That's alright, our Saturday brunch can be Saturday lunch, no biggie,” she leans in closer to whisper into his ear. “But Takeshi is a bit grumpy, so I suggest sitting next to me.”

Gulping, he nods as his childhood friend leads him to where Takeshi is seated. She was right, he _did_ look grumpy. Luckily, the look vanishes when the two reach his line of sight.

”Yuuri,” Takeshi rumbles gruffly, “Late as always I see, you're lucky I ordered for you.”

”S-sorry,” Yuuri tries to will the sweat threatening to drip down back into his pores. “I overslept.”

Takeshi crosses his arms, raising an eyebrow as he shares a look with Yuuko. “Looks like Yuuri hasn't changed at all, has he 'Ko?” he teases, posture relaxing as he breaks into a wide grin.

Yuuko laughs brightly, patting Yuuri's head as she continues the teasing. “At least this time he's willing to go outside, remember that one weekend? When we had to spend the whole day in his room?”

Yuuri flushes red as the couple tease him relentlessly, but he supposes it was deserved. Even when they're joking around at his expense, his heart still feels full whenever he gets the chance to hang out with his childhood friends.

Takeshi lets out a full belly laugh, and he's wiping tears away as he speaks. “Yeah, it was the weekend where Hiroko called us her favorite children, I wonder if that's still true now.”

Yuuko reaches over to pinch Yuuri's cheek, “Nah, no one could replace her precious baby boy,” she giggles, letting go of his cheek to ruffle his hair. “Sorry Yuuri, it's been awhile since just the three of us hung out. Isn't that right 'Keshi?”

Takeshi hums in agreement, and points his look over to Yuuri. “She's right you know (not really, they hang out every other week), so how's job searching been? Are we going to have to start calling you Mr. Katsuki now?”

Yuuri slumps down in his seat. He was hoping the question wouldn't come up. “Not so good, haven't found anything but substituting so far.”

Knowing their friend, the couple immediately change the topic, and soon the table is filled with light-hearted chatter. Yuuri smiles contentedly as they talk. Even after all this time his friends still know him better than anyone else.

A delay in conversation is caused by their food coming, but is quickly picked up again when Yuuko asks him a question. What she asks causes him to choke on his spit, wondering how the topic even came up. Did he have a lover? What kind of question is that?

”Sorry to disappoint but no,” Yuuri says after he recovers. “Why do you ask?”

Yuuko just looks conspiratorially over at Takeshi, who nods gravely. “Well,” she begins carefully. “It's just that you've been smiling more in the mornings, which you never do, and you always pick up those napkins that one man leaves behind.”

”But what does that have to do with me being in a relationship?” Yuuri answers confused. He'd still look dead on his feet, even if- _oh_. He remembers the napkin art left behind, and how they managed to brighten up his mornings. Ever since the granny portrait, he's made an attempt to be more awake, just in case he accidentally misses any of the drawings. The artist has started picking up the habit of visiting every other day, and so far left behind a drawing of the diner itself, some flowers, and another poodle.

He doesn't tell them that though, just keeps it to himself as he tells the two he's got to get used to early mornings if he wants to teach anyways. Thankfully, they let it go, and the rest of their lunch is spent talking about all the weird customers they get at the diner.

*

Winter comes quickly, and Yuuri sighs as he places napkin dispensers on each table. It's been a week after that Saturday lunch, and he feels pathetic. He told his mom to put him on host duty for the rest of the year, and only received a scrutinizing look as she adjusted the roster. He doesn't tell her about the small infatuation he holds for the silver haired artist who leaves behind beautiful drawings. Luckily, she doesn't ask for a reason why. Yuuri doesn't know if he would have any shred of dignity left if she had.

He knows it's pathetic, to wait for the silver haired stranger to walk through the door. But he can't help it. Yuuri's entranced by the pieces of art the man leaves behind, and now he can't help but need more. From the back of his mind, he tells himself that it would've been easier to actually _talk_ to the guy, but Yuuri knows he doesn't have the guts too. Aside from the beautiful drawings, the stranger is unfairly handsome. How could someone as plain as Yuuri even compare?

It's empty in the diner now, even the granny's left, and Yuuri's lost all hope on the stranger showing up. The artist usually shows up around 9, but now it’s quickly approaching 11’o clock. A chime from the door alerts him to a new customer, and Yuuri jumps off the stool quickly. His shoulders slump down when instead of silver hair, a head of blonde hair walks in. The blonde haired boy in front of him looks like he can't be older than 15, and Yuuri moves after the boy to take his order. The boy is unpleasantly rude, and Yuuri has to bite his tongue when the teen insults nearly everything on the menu.

He miraculously places an order, item #15, a fried pork cutlet with rice and mashed potatoes. After plopping back in his designated stool, he glumly fiddles with a pepper shaker. It's useless to get his hopes up for nothing, Yuuri scolds himself. He can hear the boy talking loudly on the phone as he eats, and Yuuri takes the time to wonder how people can do that without feeling insecure. When a door swings open forcefully, Yuuri can't believe who's at the door.

It's the silver haired artist. He looks even more disheveled than he does when it’s earlier in the morning, but Yuuri thinks the panicked look on his face is kind of endearing. Eyes roam the empty diner before they settle on the boy, sighing in relief. The silver haired man rushes to where the boy is seated, and Yuuri can hear loud apologies from where he's seated. Does he plan on eating? The man still hasn't taken a seat, but Yuuri makes his way over. 

”Hey,” Yuuri greets, causing the silver haired man to jump, startled. “Are you uh, planning on placing an order?”

The man only blinks dumbly, before recovering and letting out a too loud 'yes! item #2 to go please!’. Yuuri nods, writing down the order down on his notepad, “By the way,” Yuuri tries to say smoothly. “Can I have your name? We'll call you when it's done.” (Lies, lies, lies. No one comes in at this hour, it'd take a complete idiot to mix up orders).

The man in front of him calms down a bit, “Oh, it's Viktor,” he replies.

Placing the ticket in the window, Yuuri pretends to look at his phone while looking at the two seated by the back. How do the two know each other? Is the boy Viktor's son? He looks a bit young, but Yuuri reasons that the boy must be a family friend. Sadly, it looks like the artist isn't drawing today, the man just talking to the rude boy in front of him. Eventually, a plastic bag is placed on the counter, and Yuuri calls out that it's ready.

Viktor comes up to retrieve his order, handing him a few bills. The two don't say anything to each other, only exchanging polite smiles, the man leaving as fast as he came. Yuuri sighs as he places the money in the register. Did he honestly expect anything to come out of that? He snorts to himself as he wipes down the counter. Yuuri thinks he should stop being so ridiculous.

At least he's got a name to the face now.

*

Viktor doesn't know what to _do_. He's smitten, in love, never going to fall for another (more like he's being overdramatic). When he first stepped foot into that small diner, he was just expecting good hangover food. That's what Chris says at least. He still got food to cure his hangover, but Viktor likes to contribute most of it to the breathtaking host that took his order. From his name tag he could tell that the beautiful man's name was Yuuri, an equally beautiful name. When he saw the man move tiredly around the diner, he was reminded of his dog back at home, Makkachin. While she was an energetic poodle, she could also be terribly lazy. Struck by inspiration, he took out the pen he took everywhere, and drew something for the first time in months.

Soon after that he _had_ to return to the diner. It was like the small eatery held magical properties, because everything Viktor tried to draw outside of it ended up getting tossed or lay unfinished. Not to mention no one ever bothered him whenever he ate there (he guesses that's the perk of moving different countries).

He didn't intend to leave the first doodle behind though. Usually he's more careful about letting anyone see his raw, undedited work, even his closest friends. But when he saw that first napkin doodle sticking out of Yuuri's apron pocket, Viktor decided he would leave them behind. It was only fair. The host would be able to see raw versions of his pieces, while Viktor got good food and the inspiration to draw. So far he's left behind several, to the point where Yuri (what a coincidence!), his cousin, was embarrassed to even be near him. So he might have a little crush, sue him.

One day when Yuri snuck off to the diner on his own while Viktor was looking after him, he was _worried_. What if Yuri got hurt? After a stern phone call, Viktor ran to the diner, and almost sobbed with relief. Now Yakov wouldn't murder him and bury his body in a ditch. Unfortunately for him, that was also the most embarrassing interaction he had with Yuuri, he didn't even get to draw him anything before he left. He scribbled down a phone number though, but Viktor's sure the host tossed it away since he never got a text or call afterwards.

So after that incident, the artist has been avoiding the diner at all costs. Every time Christophe or Yuri invite him to eat there, he weasels his way out of it. Viktor knows they're suspicious, but he doesn't want to tell them that Viktor, a world renowned artist, is _scared_.

Luckily they don't badger him with too many questions. Viktor gets the sneaking suspicion that it's because of how down he's been feeling lately. After painting the piece 'Passive Sunlight' almost a year ago, he hit a creative slump. Something that's never happened to him before. Usually he's brimming with ideas, always looking for ways to surprise his audience with something new. However after his last piece, everything started looking the same. The colors in front of him would blend together in one single blur, a messy gray blob taking place.

Soon nothing was good enough, was too common and overdone. It took Yakov coming over and throwing away all the unfinished or broken pieces for him to finally snap out of his manic craze. At least now he could say that he as an artist went through the ‘period of suffering’, something he always scoffed at.

But now after meeting Yuuri, he's slowly starting to get that inspiration back. There's just something about him that draws him towards the young man. While he's desperate to find out what it is, he sticks to hiding from the diner until he feels less embarrassed. Knowing himself, Viktor's probably going to be back at the diner in two days.

*

Sighing as he flips the waffle maker over, Yuuri contemplates if he’s ever going to get a teaching position. After a countless number of interviews, every single one ended with a rejection. Is it Yuuri? Does he give off this vibe that tells interviewers ‘no! don’t hire him!’? That’s the only reason he can think of, which is why he’s currently hiding behind the stove. (He doesn’t want to be around people if he apparently gives off bad vibes).

It’s only him and Phichit working today, so the sort of hectic work pace helps to take his mind off his failures of getting employed. As he submerges potatoes into a pot of boiling water, Yuuri takes a moment to think about the napkin artist. From what he can tell, Viktor hasn’t been back to the diner in two weeks, and it’s starting to bum Yuuri out (he tells himself it’s because he misses the drawings, and not the man himself).

The little drawings (Viktor) are what makes Yuuri’s mornings a little bit better, and it makes dragging himself out of bed at ungodly hours in the morning worth it. So when the artist stops showing up, it adds to the gloom of being rejected from several schools. Maybe it _is_ something to do with Yuuri. He’s always been considered average compared to others, and maybe everyone he interacts with can tell. Sometimes he wonders why his friends stick around. Yuuko’s working her way through grad school to become a successful archaeologist, Takeshi working alongside her, and Phichit’s goal is to become a pediatrician. Compared to Yuuri, he doesn’t even show up as a tiny blip on their radar.

Phichit running into the kitchen brings Yuuri out from his thoughts. He's waving a napkin around, and he's got the biggest grin on his face. “Yuuri!” he cries out when he reaches him. “Why didn't you _tell_ me you knew Viktor Nikiforov?”

Yuuri was confused, he knew a Viktor, but was his Viktor the same Viktor Phichit was talking about? Who was Viktor Nikiforov anyways? “I don't know what you're talking about,” he decides to say slowly. “who's Viktor Nikiforov?”

Phichit splutters, waving his arms around wildly, “Are you telling me that all this time I've been talking about how he's my favorite artist, you weren't listening?”

Gulping nervously from being found out, Yuuri replies, “Uh, sorry about that Phichit.”

”Oh Yuuri,” Phichit sighs, “I guess it makes sense of everything now.”

”What do you mean?”

”Viktor's been coming here for _months_ , the entire time you've been hosting the diner,” he explains, before shoving the napkin in his hands. “He told me to give this to you, by the way.”

Yuuri takes a look at the napkin, and widens his eyes when he sees what's on it. It's another drawing, this time of a couple sharing breakfast over the table. The artist is finally back. “Is he still here?”

”No, he left after he gave me the napkin,” Phichit waggles his eyebrows in a ridiculous motion. “Why? Do you two have something going on?”

”What? No, that’s, Phichit,” Yuuri stutters on his words. “I've barely spoken to the guy, the only thing I know about him is that he draws really well and always orders item number 2.”

The younger man in front of him hums thoughtfully, “Well he seems to like you enough, _especially_ since he gave you that drawing.”

”What, this?” Yuuri holds the napkin up, “but I have a lot of these, I thought he just leaves them around for people to find?”

At that, Phichit's eyes widen, and he looks at Yuuri with a look of disbelief. “What do you mean more? Viktor never shows _anyone_ his unedited work.” Phichit grabs his shoulders, shaking them slightly. “Do you know what this means?”

”He should be more careful?” Yuuri's confusion reaches an all time high.

Phichit sighs, shaking his head fondly, “No, I mean yes, that too, but I think he might have a small crush on you Yuuri.” He pats his shoulder as he turns to get back to work, “Just think about it, look him up if you need to.”

With that, he steps out into the diner, leaving Yuuri confused but hopeful.

Later that night, when he's sure Phichit's asleep and unable to bother him, Yuuri pulls up Google, typing in 'Viktor Nikiforov’. Immediately after hitting enter, an enormous amount of results pop up. Clicking on his wiki, Yuuri finds out that Viktor's one of Russia’s more famous artists, known for his strikingly realistic portraits and his twist on common themes. His most known work was 'Moonlight’. It was a painting that depicted a bright town, but showed that the town was only that bright because it kept pulling its light from the moon, leaving it dull and misshapen. There's more information there, like his early childhood and family line, but he closes the window before curiosity could get the better of him.

It feels wrong to intrude like that, but that doesn't stop him from clicking on his Instagram page. Looking at it, it's different than what Yuuri expects from an artist's page, he expected more pictures of his art. Instead, numerous pictures of a poodle or the outdoors fill the screen. It's unexpectedly more personal than the private persona the media gives the artist. Giving into temptation, Yuuri clicks 'follow’, thinking that no harm would be done.

*

A few days later, Yuuko's back from her expedition, and Yuuri's back at the register. While he still feels tired to the bone, he's slightly thrumming with anticipation, waiting for Viktor to walk in. Like the world has decided to give him a break today, the artist walks in five minutes past 11, taking a window seat near the exit. Although he's still probably not going to talk to the man aside from asking for his order, he can't wait to see what drawing he leaves behind today.

After placing his order on the table, Yuuri's surprised when Viktor asks him to sit with him. “Why don't you sit?” the man sitting down asks, “It gets pretty lonely eating by myself.”

”Oh,” Yuuri says dumbly, still in shock. “I shouldn't, I'm working right now.”

The artist just scans the room, before turning back to look at Yuuri with a quirked eyebrow. “There's no one here, just sit till someone comes then, how about that?”

With a tentative nod, Yuuri takes a seat in the chair in front of him, placing sweaty hands on his lap. This is awkward, Yuuri thinks as he looks anywhere except at the man sitting in front of him. Why would he invite Yuuri to sit if he's not even talking? Working up the courage to be the first one to speak, he turns his head to look at Viktor, holding back a gasp as he does so.

The artist is scribbling on another napkin, a pretty pink tongue poking out from the corner of his lips as he drew. His eyebrows were furrowed slightly, eyes focusing intently on the task at hand. Yuuri couldn't help but feel as if he were intruding on an incredibly intimate moment. Moving his head to turn away, Viktor's voice speaking up stopped him.

”You can watch,” he said in practically a whisper. “Just as long as you don't peek at my drawing till it's done.” At that, hands move to cover the napkin as the artist looks up at Yuuri sheepishly.

He stares for who knows how long, before he realizes the words were directed towards him. “O-oh, um, alright.”

The man just smiles, small and polite, before he's back to work. Yuuri still keeps his head turned away for the most part, but he keeps sneaking looks whenever he gets the urge to. He looks to the order window, silently pleading for Yuuko or Phichit to come out to save him from his own awkwardness. Sadly, they don't hear them, and only the sound of oil crackling and water running comes from the kitchen.

”I'm done,” Viktor says suddenly, causing Yuuri's head to jerk back. He's holding the napkin in front of him, almost as if he were being _shy_. “You'll have to forgive me in advance for anything silly I might do,” the silver haired man speaks, clutching the napkin tightly, “this is the first time I'm sticking around to see your reaction.”

Yuuri smiles kindly, “That's alright, I understand how you feel. Just one question though,” he wrings his hands nervously in his lap. “how do you know if I get your drawings in the first place?”

At that, Viktor's confident exterior returns once more, smirking slightly as he says, “Your apron pocket,” he points to the napkins sticking out. “don't you ever empty that? I can see one of my drawings sticking out right now.”

Hands fly up to pat his front, feeling paper rustling as he does. Viktor was right, he notices as he peeks into his pocket, seeing wrinkled napkins along with his notepad resting inside. “I guess I didn't notice,” he says embarrassed. “I'm ah, not really a morning person.”

Viktor tilts his head in amusement as he smiles, eyes crinkling at the edges. “I can tell,” his eyes are full of mirth as he speaks. He opens his mouth to say more, but stops. Instead he just slides the napkin over to Yuuri, looking down at the table as he does. Just as he's about to take a look at the napkin face down on the table, Yuuko comes out from the kitchen.

”Hey Yuuri what are you doing? You usually come talk to us when-” she stops in her tracks when she notices the artist. “Eh? You're Viktor Nikiforov aren't you?”

”Yup,” he makes a popping noise on the 'p’.

”Yuuri!” Yuuko holds him into a headlock. “You should've said something! You know Phichit's a fan of his.”

Yuuri flails his arms around, trying to bat Yuuko's arms away from him. “I'm sorry,” he splutters undignified, “We can tell him now can't we?”

Viktor, who was watching the whole scene amused, speaks up, trying to hold back laughter. “Oh Phichit?” he waves his hand around in a flippant motion. “He was the one I told to give you something right?”

The two friends stop their roughhousing, Yuuri flushing slightly as he answers. “Yeah, should we call him out?”

”Sure.” When Yuuko goes to bring Phichit out, Viktor leans in to whisper, “I didn't know he was a fan, he was so silent last time I thought he hated me.”

At that Yuuri lets out a snort of laughter. Phichit? Hate someone? The young man is as pure as it gets, and when he tells the artist that, he sighs in relief.

Soon enough, a trembling Phichit with stars in his eyes is brought to the table. “I-it’s so nice to meet you properly, Mr. Nikiforov,” he stutters, sticking a shaking hand out.

Viktor takes it all in stride, shaking Phichit's hand as he says, “Call me Viktor, I'm only 26, Mr. Nikiforov makes me sound so old.

After a short conversation, Yuuko drags a starstruck Phichit back to the kitchen to prepare for the afternoon crowd. Yuuri can only turn to look at his two friends fondly, before turning back to see the artist staring at him.

There's a look on Viktor's face that he can't describe, and before he can say anything, the silver haired man pulls out his wallet. “It was nice eating with you,” he says as he places money on the table. His food was barely touched. “But I should go, see you.”

The artist leaves too soon for Yuuri's liking, but it does give him the chance to finally take a look at the napkin in front of him. Flipping it around, he gasps. It's a portrait of Yuuri, drawn with his head turned sideways. He runs his fingers down the napkin, feeling the indents from where a pen was pressed down harder bump along his fingertips. There's several parts where the indents are heavier, where black ink flirted with the chance of tearing the napkin open. Yuuri doesn't know how, but Viktor managed to make the man in the drawing look better than its live counterpart.

*

He doesn't know why, but Viktor asking Yuuri to sit with him while he eats becomes a common occurrence.

Every time the artist comes in, if Yuuri's the one by the register, he asks for Yuuri to sit. Not coincidentally, every time Viktor comes in, the place is practically empty. Yuuri doesn't mind though. The more he asks for Yuuri's presence, the more he allows himself to think that the stunning artist might actually want to be friends. The thought makes him feel a bit better about his failed attempts at trying to get a teaching job.

They never talk much while they sit together. Any conversation the artist started, would fade out quickly, mainly due to the uncommitted answers that came from Yuuri. After that, Viktor would still ask him to sit, except it was a lot more silent, the artist only speaking up every now and then. Yuuri tries his best to strike up a conversation, but most of the time he pretends to be invested in something else while he watches the man eat while scribbling on a napkin or scrolling through his phone. Occasionally Viktor would laugh and lift his phone up to Yuuri, showing him what made the man laugh in the first place. While it was awkward at first, Yuuri's come to cherish the moments he gets to sit with the artist. 

However, the one thing that Yuuri's most bothered by is the lack of napkin drawings. Ever since Viktor's frequency to visit the diner has increased, the less the artist draws. He would ask him to keep drawing, but Yuuri doesn't want to push. He's sure that Viktor's heard enough requests from other people to fill a lifetime. So Yuuri keeps the thought to himself, and doesn't ask the man why he stopped, his presence is more than enough.

One day before opening at the diner, Yuuri's occupying one of the tables, waiting for Yuuko and Phichit to show up so they can finally open. The door swings open, and Yuuri curses himself for leaving it unlocked. What if someone decided to rob this place? Except, he's afraid the man at the door _is_ going to rob him. The blonde haired man moves closer and closer, and Yuuri's stuck frozen in his seat in fear. What does this guy want? He's got a crazed, joyous(?) look on his face, and Yuuri begins to silently say his prayers.

”You're Yuuri, right?” the man asked, swinging a chair out to take a seat in front of him, oblivious to Yuuri's inner turmoil.

”Y-yeah, why?”

The man's face lights up, and he claps his hands together in front of his face, bowing his head. “Then thank you so much! You don't know how big of a help you've been.”

Yuuri feels himself start to calm down, hands no longer shaking. “Uh, you're welcome? I don't know what you're talking about though.”

A look of realization dawns on the man's face, before he breaks into an easy grin. “I'm Christophe, one of Viktor's friends. Figures the idiot would never bring me up in conversation.”

While this man was… interesting, he didn't know why Christophe was here in the first place. “Oh, are you an artist too?”

Christophe chuckles, propping his head up on one hand, “He was right, you don't know much about the art world at all do you?”

”Ha, sorry, not really no.”

”That’s fine,” he lifts his head up to lean back into the chair, “I paint here and there. But Viktor's always outshone everyone anyways.”

Christophe leans forward, clasping his hands together as his elbows rested on the table. “But I'm not here to tell you about who's the more popular artist, I'm here to ask how you managed to bring back Viktor's inspiration.”

Yuuri widens his eyes, there's no way what he's saying is true. How could Viktor, someone so beautifully inspiring, find his inspiration from Yuuri? When he tells that to Christophe, the man only shakes his head, pointing a finger at him as he speaks.

”I forgot you're not familiar with the situation. But did you know that Viktor hit a huge slump a year before he met you?”

Yuuri shakes his head, Viktor always made it seem like breathtaking art poured out of his pores. He never knew the man could even get stumped. Maybe the artist's not as perfect as he made him out to be. Christophe tells him that ever since Viktor stepped foot into this diner, his guest room suddenly became off limits. Confused by what that meant, Christophe explains that he's only allowed to sleep in the guest room when he's not painting or drawing anything. Now that he's been demoted to the couch, the man explains, that means Viktor's probably working on a new project. What it is, Christophe says, he doesn't know, but what he does know is that it's going to be _amazing_.

Thanking Yuuri for his time, Christophe makes a move to leave. “By the way,” he says to Yuuri before he goes out the door, “Tell him to thank me for introducing him to this place, the bastard will never give his thanks otherwise.”

Yuuri nods to himself as the door closes. Thoughts whirl around his mind, leaving him dizzy. Is that why Viktor hasn't been drawing on napkins anymore? Because he's working on something bigger? He's brought out of his thoughts as a startled Phichit walks through the door.

”Was that Christophe Giacometti who just walked out of here? Yuuri! How do you manage to attract so many artists?”

That's something that Yuuri would like an answer to as well.

*

A knock on the door startles Viktor out from his concentration. He cracks his neck, stretching his arms as he locks the guest room before heading to answer the door. Scratching his grumbling belly, he peeks out the peephole, swinging it open to reveal Chris holding several bags of take out.

”You're welcome,” is all Christophe says, kicking off his shoes to rest on the couch. Viktor follows and sits on the ottoman across from him, placing the bags on the coffee table. Rummaging through the bags, Viktor spots a carton of greasy chow mein. He snatches the carton, and quickly digs in.

Christophe chuckles as he ravenously devours the food. “Did you even eat today?” his friend asks with poorly concealed mirth in his eyes.

He looks up, noodles hanging from his mouth as he shakes his head 'no’. He had more important things to do than eat. Like painting, and trying his best not to get woozy from the paint fumes. Viktor doesn't tell his friend this, he already knows.

Chris pushes himself off the couch, taking in the disheveled state of the living room. Viktor can already see the next question rolling off his lips. “When was the last time you even went outside?” Knew it.

”A week ago,” his voice is muffled by the food.

”Aiya, Viktor, what have I told you about talking with your mouth full?” Chris groans as he makes Viktor scoot over on the ottoman.

”You've told me several things, but I'm not sure which one you're talking about right now,” he responds cheekily. His response earns a chuckle and a light pat on the cheek. A comfortable silence falls between the two friends, the only sound being Viktor's loud slurping.

”Have you been to the diner at all?” Christophe asks suddenly. The slurping stops, and Viktor side eyes his friend in suspicion.

”No, why?” Viktor says slowly, trying to guess what his friend is trying to get at.

His friend just snorts, throwing an arm around his shoulders as he raises an eyebrow. “I'm just saying, you've been going there a lot, you don't have anything going on with any of the workers do you?”

Viktor narrows his eyes, what is he trying to say here? When he doesn't say anything, his friend unfortunately continues.

”And your sudden interest in painting again doesn't have anything to do with a certain host does it? A host that goes by the name of Yuuri?”

”I don't know what you're talking about,” he denies, feeling a red hot flush creeping up his neck. Due to their close proximity, his friend takes notice, smirking smugly when he does.

”I knew it,” he triumphs, “You're painting something for Yuuri aren't you?” When Viktor just glares at him, Christophe begins making pouty faces. “And here I thought it was because you finally decided to confess your undying love for me, how sad.”

”If by undying love you mean undying annoyance, then sure,” Viktor hides his burning face into his friend's neck. “And who says I'm painting anything for Yuuri?”

”Because you're blushing, you never blush, not even when I first grabbed your ass at that one art gallery,” he says pointedly. Sometimes Viktor wonders why he's still friends with this pervert. Christophe speaks up again, “Don't worry, I'm sure he'll say yes.”

Now Viktor's confused. Say yes to what? He asks his friend to clarify, but all he gets is an exasperated look in response. “Are you serious,” Christophe deadpans. Yes, he's always serious, so why is Chris looking at him like he's stupid?

”So you're telling me,” his friend starts, jabbing his finger into Viktor's chest repeatedly. “that you don't even _know_ you're crushing on Yuuri? Surely you're not that pathetic.”

Viktor's baffled look tells him otherwise. “Apparently you are,” Chris groans.

Chris doesn't know what he's talking about. Sure, he finds Yuuri cute, sure, he wants to see the man smile all the time, and _sure_ , he's devoting one big painting to the guy, but that doesn't mean-oh. Crossing his arms, he huffs as he stands up. “So I like him, so what? It's not like he'll like me back,” looking down at his friend, Viktor makes one final statement. “I'm going back to work, feel free to stay if you want.”

”Oh, don't worry Viktor, I'm pretty sure the guy likes you back,” he grins smugly as he smacks the back of Viktor's thigh. “Just you wait and see.”

Slamming the guest door while yelling out that Chris is staying on the couch tonight, he just paints as a smug 'I know’ is yelled back in response. What does Chris know anyways?

*

Two weeks later, Yuuri sighs as he hangs up the phone. He had high hopes for this position, but that call smashed them all to the ground. He knows that it's not even been a full year since he graduated college, but the stain of failure is already making its presence known. On top of that, Viktor hasn't stepped foot into the diner for weeks. It's like he completely vanished. And on top of _that_ , Yuuko and Phichit aren't here today, two strangers taking their place.

As he's wiping down tables for the next customers, he shakes his head. Yuuri's not going to let some rejection or grade school crush get in the way of work. Filling his lungs with false confidence, he places a napkin dispenser down a bit too forcefully, causing some heads to turn. Maybe he should tone it down a little, he thinks as he cringes at the noise.

He turns around when he hears the door open, and rubs his eyes when he sees who's at the door. He slowly makes his way to where Viktor is seated in disbelief. What is he doing back here? When Yuuri finally reaches the table, Viktor's twiddling his thumbs as he looks down.

”Hey,” Yuuri says, making the artist's head snap up. “Uh, what would you like to order?” Yuuri mentally bangs his head on the table. He'd like to order himself a new set of social skills.

”The usual please,” he smiles up at Yuuri, causing his breath to catch in his throat. With a 'coming right up’, he places the ticket in the order window. Even now he still gets flustered around the man.

Soon enough his order makes its way to the table, and Viktor asks him again to sit. While he would love to, a couple walks through right at that moment. Viktor just smiles at him ruefully, waving a hand as if telling him 'it’s ok, do your job’. Yuuri reluctantly leaves the artist sitting at the table, and goes to tend to the new customers.

As soon as he's done, he looks up to find that Viktor's gone. Sighing sadly as he walks over to the table, he picks up the half finished plate and money left behind. However his mood lifts a bit when he sees a napkin on the table. Stuffing it in his (now empty) apron pocket, he heads to the register to take a closer look. As always, he's stunned by the drawing he left behind, appreciating the way the ink dances gracefully across the paper. This time he drew a figure with his back turned towards him. It looks incomplete though, he can see faint outlines sitting on top of the napkin.

Maybe when he comes back Yuuri will ask him what he intended to draw. (Maybe he likes using every excuse and opportunity he can to talk to the silver haired artist).

It turns out he doesn't have to wait long, the man in question is back two hours later, when there's a lull in customers. This time he's accompanied by Christophe, who appears to be pushing him? Curious, Yuuri moves to open the door before the two men even reach it.

”Ah, Yuuri,” Christophe greets loudly, “Just the person I wanted to see.”

Tilting his head in confusion, Yuuri takes a look at the two artists’ faces. Christophe looks like he just successfully pulled a prank on his friend, while Viktor looks like the friend who just got pranked. “Hi Chris, Viktor, what ah, what do you mean?”

Christophe just grins even wider than before, clapping a hand on Viktor's back as he does. “Viktor here wants to tell you something,” he turns around to leave, whispering in Viktor's ear before he turns around and winks at Yuuri. “I'll just leave you two to it.”

Yuuri directs his look back to the man in front of him curiously. Why hasn't he spoken yet? And why does it look like he's going to throw up? Because he can relate to the feeling, Yuuri speaks up first, “It's ok if you don't want to say anything, I'll understand.”

”No! I mean, uh, no it's fine, I've been wanting to tell you something for awhile anyways,” Viktor finally blurts out. He watches as the usually confident artist takes a shaky breath, eyes widening once he hears what comes out from his mouth.

”I, I've liked you for quite awhile now, and,” the artist scratches his head, gulping before he raises his head up to look at Yuuri with intent burning in his eyes. “you've managed to inspire me in ways I never knew were possible. You don't have to say you like me back, but if you don't, I hope we can still stay friends.”

So Viktor likes him too? Yuuri can't believe what he's hearing. Stuff like this only happens in the movies. He never knew that he would be one of those lucky people whose crush liked them back. Apparently he took to long to speak, because he can see the artist's expression to deflate.

”Viktor you _idiot_ ,” Yuuri softens his tone when he sees the man flinch. “Even if I didn't like you back you shouldn't have to doubt our friendship. I kept napkins in my pocket for _weeks_ because of you, so yes Viktor, I like you too.”

"Oh? That's a relief then," the artist sighs in relief before his expression falls into a content, small smile.

The pair stand there by the front door awkwardly, as if they were both waiting for someone to make the first move. Eventually Viktor starts to fidget, and he reaches out to hold one of Yuuri's hands in his, thumbs rubbing his palm as he speaks up again. The action sends shivers down Yuuri's spine. “You know how I said you've inspired me right?” Yuuri nods, unsure to where this is going. “Well, I sort of made this whole exhibit because of you, and it's supposed to be showcased in two weeks. Do you want to come with me? As my date?”

Grinning widely to conceal his shock, he moves the hand that Viktor's holding, kissing the back of his hand as he says 'yes, I'd love to’. Yuuri makes a mental note to do that more often, especially when he sees Viktor's eyes widen slightly in surprise. There's so many things he doesn't know about this man yet, but he's excited to find out.

Soon enough, a coughing noise can be heard from behind, and the two of them turn to find a slightly embarrassed customer standing by the door. They break apart quickly to let them in, and Yuuri points to where the patron is seated with a red flush on his face. Viktor nods in understanding, and goes to take his own seat. He heads over to take the customer's order with a newfound pep in his step, spotting Viktor scribbling on another napkin from the corner of his eye.

Maybe mornings weren't such a bad thing after all. 

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!  
> I woke up and had this compelling need to write a diner au... don't ask why  
> Edit: wow guys, thank you so much for your positive responses, this is the first time one of my fics (that wasn't nsfw) broke over 300 kudos ;-; Thank you so much and thank you all for the lovely comments! I don't really care much for the kudos as I do for the comments. I love every one you guys leave behind :')  
>  
> 
> Feel free to yell at my tumblr @kinkshamingonice


End file.
